How every league measures against the NHL, and where NHL players come from.
Measured from the season-by-season histories of every player and prospect on file, not from reputation. A high-scoring league is not a strong league: what matters is how much of a player's scoring survives the move to the NHL.
- Players measured
- 2,296
- Leagues
- 60
- NHL regulars traced
- 776
How much scoring survives the move
Median of NHL points per game divided by points per game in the league, for players who played 20+ games there and 20+ NHL games within two years. 0.50 means half the scoring rate carried over.
| League | Scoring that carries to the NHL | Players measured | Points per game in the league |
|---|---|---|---|
| KHL | 0.77 | 30 | 0.39 |
| HockeyAllsvenskan | 0.72 | 5 | 0.45 |
| SHL | 0.57 | 35 | 0.33 |
| Liiga | 0.49 | 14 | 0.43 |
| AHL | 0.46 | 399 | 0.51 |
| NCAA | 0.38 | 116 | 0.63 |
| OHL | 0.28 | 77 | 0.81 |
| WHL | 0.28 | 52 | 0.81 |
| QMJHL | 0.27 | 25 | 0.84 |
Where the points are cheap
Average points per game across every skater season on file in the league. High numbers here without high translation above mean the league is generous, not strong.
| League | Points per game | Player seasons | Carries to the NHL |
|---|---|---|---|
| High-MN | 1.55 | 50 | — |
| SAAHL U15 | 1.54 | 54 | — |
| USHS-MN | 1.42 | 184 | — |
| CSSHL U15 | 1.42 | 118 | — |
| CSSHL U18 | 1.30 | 65 | — |
| Russia U17 | 1.27 | 55 | — |
| Russia U16 | 1.24 | 91 | — |
| U16 Elit | 1.18 | 53 | — |
| 14U AAA | 1.17 | 82 | — |
| 15U AAA | 1.15 | 91 | — |
| USHS-Prep | 1.07 | 197 | — |
| 16U AAA | 1.04 | 131 | — |
| AMBHL | 1.02 | 116 | — |
| GTHL U16 | 0.97 | 93 | — |
| J18 Region | 0.94 | 60 | — |
| AMHL | 0.92 | 50 | — |
| QMAAA | 0.87 | 65 | — |
| QMJHL | 0.84 | 645 | 0.27 |
| OHL | 0.81 | 1282 | 0.28 |
| WHL | 0.81 | 1038 | 0.28 |
| U18 SM-sarja | 0.81 | 103 | — |
| BCHL | 0.77 | 122 | — |
| J20 Nationell | 0.76 | 303 | — |
| U20 SM-sarja | 0.74 | 99 | — |
| NTDP | 0.69 | 248 | — |
| USHL | 0.64 | 898 | — |
| NCAA | 0.63 | 1584 | 0.38 |
| MHL | 0.63 | 246 | — |
| ECHL | 0.58 | 185 | — |
| AHL | 0.51 | 2397 | 0.46 |
| NL | 0.49 | 56 | — |
| VHL | 0.46 | 110 | — |
| HockeyAllsvenskan | 0.45 | 120 | 0.72 |
| Liiga | 0.43 | 207 | 0.49 |
| KHL | 0.39 | 350 | 0.77 |
| Czechia | 0.34 | 68 | — |
| SHL | 0.33 | 309 | 0.57 |
Current NHL regulars by the league they played in at 18, and by draft round
Counted across the regulars whose histories are on file. Undrafted players are listed by the league they were in at 18, which is where a club looking for the next one would start.
League at 18: OHL 148 · WHL 104 · USHL 86 · NCAA 78 · QMJHL 56 · J20 Nationell 33 · SHL 30 · Liiga 22 · NHL 20 · MHL 16 · KHL 13 · BCHL 12 · HockeyAllsvenskan 10 · USHS-Prep 9 · AJHL 7 · NTDP 7 · U-18 6 · AHL 6 · VHL 6 · USHS-MN 5 · High-MA 4 · NL 4 · Russia-Jr. 4 · OJHL 4 · U20 SM-sarja 4 · UMHSEHL 4 · NAHL 3 · EJHL 3 · Czechia 3 · U20 SM-liiga 3 · DEL 3 · Slovakia 3 · High-MN 2 · OPJHL 2 · Norway 2 · UMHSEL 2 · ON-Jr.A 2 · CzRep 2 · CCHL 2 · CzRep-Jr. 2 · Fin-Jr. 2 · Czechia2 2 · Belarus 2 · Rus-KHL 1 · CzRep-2 1 · Denmark 1 · Finland-2 1 · CJHL 1 · MJrHL 1 · ON-Jr.B 1 · Swiss-Jr. 1 · T1EHL 1 · Czech U20 1 · CAHS 1 · MJHL 1 · DNL 1 · T1EHL 18U 1 · SL 1 · DNL2 1 · DEL2 1 · NCDC 1
Draft round: Round 1 312 · Round 2 134 · Undrafted 105 · Round 3 80 · Round 4 54 · Round 5 39 · Round 6 30 · Round 7 22
Undrafted, by league at 18: USHL 20 · OHL 13 · QMJHL 11 · WHL 6 · USHS-Prep 5 · MHL 5 · NCAA 4 · BCHL 4 · OJHL 3 · USHS-MN 3 · AJHL 3 · OPJHL 2 · KHL 2 · EJHL 2 · UMHSEHL 2 · U20 SM-liiga 2 · Norway 1 · MJrHL 1 · CCHL 1 · Czech U20 1 · MJHL 1 · VHL 1 · DNL 1 · Liiga 1 · T1EHL 18U 1 · J20 Nationell 1 · Czechia2 1 · Belarus 1 · DNL2 1 · DEL2 1 · NCDC 1
How this is measured
Translation = median of (first NHL season points per game / points per game in the last league season before it) for players who played 20+ games in each, within two years. Only the first NHL season counts, so veterans who went abroad and returned do not inflate a league. Scoring per game = average points per game across every skater season on file in that league. Origins count current NHL regulars by the league they played in at 18 and by draft round. Every number carries its sample size; leagues with fewer than 5 translation pairs show no translation.
The prospect rankings use these measured translations as the league ladder wherever a league has at least ten measured players; smaller samples fall back to a stated default and say so.